Touring Chiloe

Caroline and I toured Ancud together. We went to the Chiloe History Museum where I learned about the Great Chilean Earthquake of 1960. The earthquake was the largest ever recorded, 9.5 on the Richter scale, and the resulting tsunamis destroyed parts of Chile, Hawaii, and Japan. The hardest hit area was around Chiloe. Many of the historic buildings were destroyed. I asked Rosa if she was still living in Chiloe when the earthquake hit, but she had already moved north with her family. Still, some of Rosa's family remained. Many of them were fishermen and they noticed the sea retreating so they went to the higher ground and were safe. Rosa said it was only the people that were in denial that stayed at sea level. Still, the tsunami caused much destruction. The museum also housed a skeleton of a blue whale. I was very impressed. The thing was huge!

Caroline and I then sought out lunch. We found a cafe on the main plaza. I was thrilled to see hamburguesa americana on the menu. I am not a hamburger eater in general, but I was so homesick that nothing sounded better than a gigantic burger and fries. And it was gigantic. After, we toured a small fort that remains on the island. But then it began to rain so we rushed back to the downtown area and went to the covered market where they sell traditional Chilota wood and wool crafts. I also found some alpaca wraps, so I bought two for my mom (although I did wear one that night to keep out the cold. Don't tell her).

The next day, Rosa, her father, Caroline, and I took a bus an hour south to Castro, the capitol of Chiloe. Rosa's two brothers who died in infancy are buried in the graveyard there and she wanted to visit them. Castro has an amazing cathedral. It is completely made of wood and it was built with no nails. While Rosa and Zenobio went to the graveyard, Caroline and I went to the internet cafe. It was Lerone's birthday and I was thrilled that he was online and I could talk to him for just a few minutes. The four of us ate at a restaurant built on poles over the water, called palofitos. Even though they boasted great seafood, I was happy with just basic chicken and potatoes. While we were eating, dolphins were playing just outside our window. It was quite charming. Right across the street was the Castro market. This was much bigger than the market in Ancud with endless stalls of Chilota wool and wood crafts. There were bread baskets, napkin holders, toys, waterproof ponchos (made with untreated wool), skirts, hats, and liquor! I bought a blue hat which has since been called "grandma-ish," a blue alpaca wrap, and Licor de Oro. Licor de Oro is made only in Chiloe. Traditionally, it is an apple liquor tinted with saffron, but now they make many other types. The man at the stand offered me tastes and I'm pretty sure I tried a little half shot of each one. Rosa gently reminded me: "Jen, you've got to get out of here on your own two feet." In the end, I bought a raspberry licor, a chocolate licor, and a coffee licor.

That night, we went again to the farmhouse. I played more cards with the kids and ate a big fried meal. Actually, it was very delicious. There were fried bread twists dusted with sugar and some without. There were fried and baked potato patties. We also had more pork (the whole dead pig was decimated during our stay). I also was contracted to make a pie. They brought out apples from the farm that were tiny and wrinkled, but had been dried and preserved from the fall. Rosa's cousin made a crust, but Caroline and her cousin had to go buy eggs from the neighbor. Caroline said that they paid the equivalent of 20 cents and got a dozen eggs (still warm from the nest) and the neighbors invited them in for tea. The two girls ran back through a thunderstorm, but we were able to make the pie. This whole time we had no power. The power had been turned off by the city for repairs. Because the family had a well, we also had no water. Instead, they collected rainwater that fell off the roof to make tea, which I declined. The power came back on, but only briefly. Just as it was getting dark, we lost power again and we had to cook and eat by the light of candles. I tried not to eat too much of the fried stuff, but it was delicious. And my pie was a big success.

Finally, we had to say goodnight and goodbye and the next day we boarded another Salon Cama that took us all 1000 miles back to Santiago.